Electrical workers use grounding cables on an almost daily basis in the industry to help manage dangerous voltages and currents in de-energized power lines and electrical equipment. Grounds are designed to be installed and removed using an insulating tool, for example an insulating tool called a Grip-All stick or Shotgun, to keep the worker at a safe distance from the hazard.
When installing grounds, the first connection is always made to a ground point. Workers will normally make this connection by hand instead of with the insulating tool, as there is no hazardous energy when making this connection.
Any time a connection is made to a conductor or apparatus that could be at a different electrical potential from ground, this connection must be made using an insulating tool. This is especially true in a high voltage environment (for example, over 69 Kv). Due to the design of conventional ground clamps, they can be installed and removed by hand instead of being installed using an insulating tool. It is not uncommon in applicant's experience for workers to make the mistake of installing a ground clamp on a conductor, or removing one from a conductor by hand instead of with an insulating tool. This potentially exposes the worker to a voltage potential and consequently may result in electrocution of the worker. To applicant's knowledge, this has accounted for fatalities and electrocution incidents in the industry.
Consequently, there is a need in the industry for a locking ground clamp that operates in combination with an insulating tool so as to prevent the worker or lineman from being able to operate the ground clamp without the use of the insulating tool. This is to inhibit workers or linemen from attempting to install the ground clamp by hand. To accomplish this a locking mechanism is described below which prevents manual operation of the ground clamp as the ground clamp can only be actuated or un-locked with or in the presence of the insulating tool.